And if you don’t do it regularly, you can end up with a problem that’s really difficult to overcome. Most people don’t find creating and sticking to a budget to be a lot of fun.īut the longer you put it off, the harder it is to do. To be clear: The budgeting process is to your financial health what cleaning your bathroom is to your physical health. You’ll also want to include line items in your budget for different types of saving: emergencies, specific large purchases, and long-term/retirement.

Income typically includes your wages, though it can also include things such as investment returns.Įxpenses include every dollar you spend, from housing costs and income taxes to food and fun stuff like vacations, sporting events, and going out for a nice dinner and drinks. If you prefer working on a computer or hashing it out on paper, then check out these free, ready-to-use downloadable budget templates that will help you build a financial plan.What is a budget? A budget is a listing of your actual income and the amount you can afford to spend on your expenses and put into savings.

Understand where all your money actually goesĪ few weeks ago, we posted a list of our favourite mobile budget apps.

Can comfortably put your feet up during retirement.

Stay out of debt (or work your way out of it).

Always have enough money for the things you need and want.

Maintaining a budget can help ensure that you: Getting started on a personal budget can be daunting and keeping it up can be a challenge. As you go along, it’s important to keep the big picture in mind. Regular check-ins to remind yourself about the long-term benefits of budgeting can help you become more intentional with your daily spending.

Wait… budgeting brings happiness? Yes, it can! Take it from someone who used to loath it. It wasn’t until I downloaded and started playing around with a few budgeting templates that I actually began to appreciate the process. Maintaining a balanced budget has not only brought me closer to reaching my personal goals, but it’s also made me feel more relaxed, and dare I say, happier. Some people love pouring over numbers. But for me, up until recently, the very idea of sitting down to work on a financial spreadsheet would make my eyes glaze over. Not only was it not on my to-do list, budgets and financial planning were something that I avoided altogether.

Simple budgeting sheet